RESTORATION ENGLAND (1660-1668)

King Charles II ruled England from 1660 to 1685. His reign marked stability after the civil
wars of the English Revolution. Parliament restored law and order among the confused public.
Episcopacy or the supreme power of the bishops was brought back. A common prayer book
was introduced for Puritans, Anglicans and Presbyterians. The political parties were divided into
Whigs and Tories. Whigs supported the Parliament and Tories supported the King.

Anglicanism was the religion of the Upper Class people. The remaining Puritans had to
put up with the Clarendon Code passed by the king. This Clarendon Code suppressed the
dominant Puritans. It consisted of four acts, namely:

(i) Corporation Act – all municipal officers must accept Anglicanism

(ii) Act of Uniformity – a common prayer book for all

(iii) Conventicle Act – non-Anglican prayers were not allowed anywhere in

England

(iv) Five-Mile Act – priests must not travel more than five miles.

Science and technology were developed. Industry and navigation enhanced. The Royal
Society of Science was founded in 1662. Prince Rupert, cousin to Charles II, and Sir Isaac
Newton were popular members of this Society. As science developed, people stopped being
superstitious and began searching for reason.

The most important feature of the Restoration was the reopening of the theatres.
Theatres were once unhygienic and roofless. Now, they had thatched roofing, candles for night
scene, balconies, curtains, scenery for backdrops and even musical accompaniments. Women
started acting for the first time. So far, young boys specially trained from childhood were
playing the role of women. Nell Gwynne was a famous actress of the time.

The Restoration brought freedom everywhere. This freedom gave way to vulgar
comedies. Some of the famous Restoration comedies were The Country Wife by William
Wycherley and The Way of the World by William Congreve. Because of such vulgar plays, the
First Licensing Act was introduced by the Tories in 1663. Aphra Behn was the first female
novelist. She was a spy to Charles II. She wrote the novel Oronooko based on her experiences in
the West Indies.

Private libraries were common during the time. Diary writing became very popular.
Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn were two writers who recorded incidents and disasters in their

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diaries. Bookcases were common in every home. Reading was a habit and a leisure activity.
Circulating libraries were also introduced. The first library was constructed by Tenison, the
Archbishop of Canterbury in 1684.

The Upper Class enjoyed but the Middle Class and the labourers suffered a lot. There
was no trade union and labourers had to pay a heavy tax. The Upper Class had a high standard
of life. They ate bread, meat and vegetables for every meal. Most people ate meat daily. Sports
were again a favorite pastime. Hunting birds, foxes and hares with a pack of hounds was
another pastime. People also enjoyed wrestling, sword-fighting, cockfighting and bear-baiting.
The aristocrats loved horse-racing.

Two great calamities happened in London in 1666: The Great Plague and the Great Fire.
The plague wiped out more than one-third of the population. The fire destroyed most of the
buildings and raged for five days. Both these events were recorded by the diary writers. John
Dryden wrote about this in his long poem Annus Mirabilis. But these events helped the
reconstruction of a new London.

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